5 Essential Things I Wish I Knew Before Attending University

I swear university needs a survival guide or something but no... society wants us to learn these things as you go along. When your poor and food goes missing, you cannot stand the mess of the communal areas and your sick of the fire alarm going off at 2 am every morning, your just meant to suck it up and say "oh yeh, that's university for you!' Not the best way to keep motivated or anything. I am, therefore, going to help you learn some of the things I wish I knew before attending university as I went along so that you can be at least aware of them. Wow, you can learn loads of new things at university.

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5 Essential Things I Wish I Knew Before Attending University

Join A Society Or Sports Team

I wish I had done this sooner because I enjoyed my second year so much more being with the netball team! I met some amazing people who made my experience at university a memorable one. Most sports teams or societies meet up at least once a week and some even had social nights so you can get to know them even more with some games and booze if you want to drink! I loved joining netball as it behaved as a way to get your mind off university stress and also, meeting a wider range of people outside your course!

You Will Not Get On With Some Of Your Flatmates

It is very rare to get on with ALL of your flatmates- you're very lucky if you do. Don't get me wrong I got on with most of mine, it was just the odd one that wouldn't clean up after themselves in the kitchen or would keep slamming the door when they left the flat in the middle of the night. Earmuffs were my life when I was living in the halls of residence. Even though I did like the majority of the time in halls, I am so glad I do not have to be there anymore. No more fire alarms at 2 am and drunken people outside your door… Peace- wow I sounded so old then. But I like my sleep now and have gotten out of the stage of going out every night. The student union has definitely lessened my motivation to go out every week as I did that throughout my entire university life.

Don’t Go To The Student Union Sober

There was one time that I went to the student union sober and I must say that it was my worst ever experience. Am I the only one who can't stand drunken people when you’re sober? I'm not saying to get too drunk so you can't function properly but feel a bit tipsy is enough for a night out to be able to enjoy it. I am not, and will never be, a heavy drinker, I hate not being in control and knowing what is happening in a situation so I would never drink that much anyway. In my student union, the floors would always be sticky from spillages throughout the night and don't even get me started on the toilets- yuck. You will soon realise it's not a great place to be sober…

Never Leave Your Nicest Food In The Kitchen

Drunk people coming back from the night out will definitely come and raid your cupboards when you're nicely tucked up in bed. I strongly suggest leaving all your favourite food in your room! Luckily we had a mini fridge in our bedrooms so we could store some chilled stuff as well! This is also useful for storing alcohol, perfect for cooling down the white wine; don’t leave alcohol out either or you will not see it again!

Try New Things

University has allowed me to explore new things that I would not have normally had the opportunity to take. One example was going to Romania by fundraising money for a charity to help disadvantaged children and renovating their care homes. This experience allowed me to have a different view of the world and that I definitely take things for granted and how lucky I am for the family and life I was born into. I strongly recommend doing something new and out of your comfort zone to help shape you as a person and open your eyes up to something different from what you are used to.

Final Thoughts

These are what I wish I knew before going to university, some experiences you will love and some you will absolutely hate. But that's ok! You're not going to like every aspect of the journey but just enjoy the time there as much as you can as you will look back with fond memories.